by Larissa Ione
She stood back as he came to his feet smoothly, if a little stiffly. Instead of moving directly to the bathroom, he stalked toward her. More accurately, he stalked her. And now that he was on his feet, he was much bigger than she’d remembered, a wall of muscle and male flesh that filled her vision so there was nothing else but Lore. Every step made her heart skip a beat, as if the heavy thud of each footfall shocked it out of rhythm.
Though she knew the chain would stop him, she couldn’t help but take a step back.
The chain yanked him short two feet away. He stood there, dark eyes drilling into her and holding her as captive as he was.
“I’ll get free,” he growled. “And when I do, you’re going to experience everything I have. I promise you that.”
Swallowing dryly, she stepped forward, resisting the urge to flinch when he strained against the chains so he was no farther than an inch from her.
His gaze dropped to her mouth, surprising the wind out of her, and she suspected that if he could, he’d kiss her.
“You can’t best me,” she ground out, a little breathlessly.
“Yeah. I can.”
Oh, he was arrogant and intimidating and way too sexy for his own good. And worse, he might be right. She was vulnerable to him in a way she’d never been vulnerable to anyone before. Especially now, with his blood coursing through her veins, and his every desire and emotion channeling into her, making her sympathize with him. Empathize. Want him.
“Maybe we don’t have to best anyone,” she said, hoping her voice didn’t sound as choked with lust to him as it did to her. “We can help each other.”
He smiled and lifted his gaze so their eyes were locked. “Agreed. You let me go, and I’ll do whatever you want.” He inhaled deeply, and his smile grew sinister. “And I know exactly what you want.”
Her body tingled and her heart raced, pushing super-heated blood through her veins. Yes, he knew exactly what she wanted. And it was something she could never have.
Nine
Wraith really hated family fucking meetings. Always had, always would. That he had a mate and kid now didn’t mean he loved to sit in Eidolon’s den and listen to his brothers chew him out for something.
Not that this would be an ass-chewing. Wraith had been a good boy—relatively, anyway—since Serena and his son had come into his life, and he wasn’t about to jeopardize the happiness he’d found.
So if this meeting wasn’t about him, he had a feeling it would be about Lore.
So fucking cool to finally not be the brother causing the trouble.
Mickey, Tayla’s ferret, attacked him the moment he walked through the front door of Eidolon’s Manhattan high-rise apartment. Wraith handed his infant son, Stewie, to Serena, just as the weasel scampered up his body and onto his shoulder, all chatter and nuzzling.
Serena laughed, a sound Wraith didn’t ever think he’d tire of hearing. Sometimes, he wondered how he’d lived without it for so long. “You weren’t kidding when you said he likes you.”
“Yeah,” he said, as he stroked a finger over the critter’s narrow head, “bugs the shit out of Tayla, too. Cracks me up.”
Serena lifted their son so he could see Mickey, and between the baby’s toothless grin and the weasel’s chatter, Wraith figured they’d end up the best of friends soon.
He left his mate and son in the living room with Tayla and Mickey, and as he was heading to E’s den, Shade came in, a baby in each arm. Behind him, Runa brought in the third of the triplets. She was smiling, but Shade didn’t look happy to be here. Obviously, the fight earlier was still too fresh. Which was odd, since Shade had never been one to nurse a grudge against E or Wraith—and Wraith had definitely deserved some continued resentment.
Wraith left him to get the kids settled and walked into E’s den. As usual, his brother was sitting at his desk, nose buried in a medical text, his dog, Mange, at his feet.
E looked up. “Is Shade here, too?”
“Yeah.” Wraith sank down on the leather sofa and sprawled out, kicking one foot up on the cushions.
Shade slammed into the room. “What’s this about?” He didn’t sit, just stood near the door, arms crossed over his chest, jaws working overtime on a piece of gum. “Because if it’s about Lore, you’re wasting your time.”
“It’s about Lore,” E said softly. “But mostly it’s about his sister.”
Shade narrowed his eyes. “How does he have a sister? His mother was human, so any sister would be long dead or really fucking old.”
“He does have a sister, and she’s not going to be happy with us if anything happens to Lore.”
“So what?”
Abruptly, Eidolon came to his feet. “Gods, Shade! How can you be so cavalier about Lore’s fate?”
Shade’s eyes sparked gold, and Wraith braced himself for Jerry Springer, round two. “I’m not. I’m just not as in love with him as you are. And I couldn’t give a shit about the sister. I don’t know her, and I don’t want to.”
“Well, here’s the thing,” Eidolon said. “I do know his sister. And you’re both going to want to.”
Wraith yawned. “I don’t.”
Eidolon shot him an annoyed look—as if Wraith hadn’t seen one of those before. “Yes you do. Because she’s not just Lore’s sister. I think she’s ours, too.”
“Hell’s bells,” Shade muttered. “I must have hit you in the head harder than I thought.”
“Her name is Sin,” E continued. “She’s Lore’s fraternal twin. And she’s a female Sem.”
Whoa. Wraith sat up straight and wondered if he looked as stunned, confused, and skeptical as Shade did. “That’s impossible.”
“I know. But I met her. Unless she’s using one hell of an illusion enchantment to change her appearance, she’s not faking it. I took DNA samples to be sure. We’ll know something tomorrow.”
Shade paced, his long strides forcing a U-turn every five steps. “Bullshit. You’re wrong. She put a spell on you or messed with your head.” He halted and swung around. “Hell, you’re so fucking desperate to save Lore, I wouldn’t put it past you to invent this new sister.”
“You think I’ve manufactured this?” Frost formed on E’s words, and shit, things were going to go critical.
Wraith shoved to his feet. “Ah… look. E’s got a hard-on for Lore, but he’s not a liar.” Gods, when had he become the voice of reason in the family?
Shade barked out a laugh. “So you think we should just roll over and let Lore kill Kynan so this sister doesn’t get her little feelings hurt?”
“Fuck that,” Wraith said. “Lore isn’t touching Kynan. But it’s a non-issue right now, since the angel took him. He could be dead.”
“What a shame,” Shade said in a taunting tone as he swung his head toward Eidolon in a blatant attempt to rile him… and it worked. E lunged.
Wraith caught him, and in one easy, fluid motion, shoved him against the wall. This was crazy. These two had never been at odds like this before. It wasn’t like E to be so hot-tempered, and it wasn’t like Shade to be so callous. Something was seriously wrong.
“We’re not doing this,” Wraith gritted out. “Not in a house full of kids. So you boys need to step off, or I’ll lay you both flat.” His threat pretty much flew in the face of what he’d just said about not fighting, but E and Shade were too busy snarling at each other to notice.
Shade put his fist through the wall. “No problem. House won’t be full of kids, because we’re out of here.” He moved toward the door.
“Shade!” Eidolon’s booming voice halted their brother in his tracks, though he didn’t turn around. “If you ever accuse me of trying to pull off a deception like that again, you’ll need more than Wraith to save you.”
Shade’s fists clenched at his sides, and for a long, drawn-out moment, the tension vibrating the air danced on Wraith’s skin. Finally, Shade stalked out, and the room seemed to breathe easier. At least, until E tried to follow.
“I don’t think so
.” Wraith held him against the wall until the commotion outside and the slamming of the front door made it clear that Shade, Runa, and the little ones were gone. The moment he released E, his brother took a few laps around the room, dropping cuss-bombs with every step.
“What the fuck is wrong with him?” E asked.
“Him? You’re both being assholes.” Wraith folded his arms over his chest. “E?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you really think this Sin chick is legit?”
Eidolon stiffened. “You doubt me, too?”
Wraith chose his words carefully, not wanting to send E into orbit again. “It’s just damned convenient. I know you’re not fucking with us, but what if she is? What if this is a scam to help Lore kill Kynan?”
“I don’t know, Wraith. I really don’t.”
Man, what a freak show. “What if it’s true? What would it mean that there is a female Sem in the world?”
“Best guess?”
Wraith nodded.
“Chaos,” Eidolon said grimly. “From what I’ve seen, this female is chaos on legs.”
* * *
Three A.M. New York time took forever to arrive.
Sin had hung out at the assassin den for a while, had won six hundred Sheoulin gold marks in two games of pool, but ultimately, the wait had driven her aboveground and back to Lore’s place. At least in his house, she could feel him, could hold on to the hope that he was still alive.
Finally, as the clock struck the devil’s hour, the dagger in Sin’s hand began to glow. The heat seeped into her palm and up her arm to her brain, as though it had plugged into its target’s life force.
Idess was a great distance away, but thanks to the Harrowgates, thousands of miles translated to seconds of travel time. Which was good, since Sin only had sixty minutes to work with the dagger.
She stepped into the gate near Lore’s shack. Closing her eyes, she let the dagger guide her hand over the lit maps of the world and Sheoul. When her fingers touched down, she opened her eyes once more.
The lines in the walls shifted, bringing Canada into detailed view. The dagger guided her hand to the north-west, to the Yukon Territory. Once again, the lines rear-ranged, focusing on the remote province. And then her finger came down near the center, and the Harrowgate opened up into a forest—and about three feet of snow.
Mother. Fuck. Did Canada not know it was May?
Idess must know she was being tracked, and she was going to make this as difficult as possible. Furious, Sin tapped the maps until she came out in Sheoul, at the gate near the assassin den. She hurried to her quarters, changed into her cold-weather gear, and hit the Harrowgate at a run. As she tapped the map to get back to Canada, she glanced at her watch.
Dammit! Half an hour wasted. She practically dove out of the Harrowgate, cursing up a storm in every language she knew. Not that she was fluent in any but English. She just knew a lot of cuss words.
Almost instantly, the cold ate her curses as her breath froze in her throat and nose. With every step, her boot broke through the thick crust of ice on top of the snow, slowing her down and pissing her off.
Sin was so going to torture Lore’s location out of this bitch.
Hands shaking, she peeled back her parka sleeve and checked her watch. Time was nearly up. And then, ahead… a lone figure stood in a clearing, wearing nothing but jeans, boots, and a damned tank top. How nice that abductor chick was impervious to the cold, while Sin was about to freeze to death.
“Where is he?” she called out. “Where is my brother?”
Idess blinked. “Brother?” For some reason, she smiled. “No worries. He’s fine.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“I don’t care.”
In Sin’s hand, the dagger vibrated, hungry for another taste of the female’s blood. But as Sin moved forward, Idess moved back.
“Let Lore go,” Sin growled.
“That’s not possible.”
“Then I’ll kill you.”
“It’s not going to be easy.”
“Nothing worthwhile ever is.” Sin took another step forward. Idess took another back. “Damn you! Lore can’t be held prisoner. He needs… he has needs.”
“Yes,” Idess said flatly. “I’ve discovered that.”
“If you’ve let him suffer—”
“I haven’t.” She glanced down at her watch and smiled. “Looks like our time here is done. If you want your brother returned, you’ll have a name for me next time we meet.”
“A name?”
“The name of the person who hired you and Lore.”
Sin sucked in a harsh breath and nearly choked on the icy air. “Can’t,” she wheezed. Jesus, even if she knew who hired them, to tell would break the assassin code and earn you a fate way worse than death.
Idess shrugged. “Then you won’t see Lore again.” She waggled her fingers and disappeared, leaving Sin half-frozen and furious in the middle of a godforsaken forest.
* * *
Idess had been gone almost twenty hours. Twenty freaking hours. She’d needed only an hour to evade Sin, and scenarios of what might have gone wrong kept tripping through Lore’s head. Worry, helplessness, and hunger gnawed at him, and he’d had to take care of his physical needs with annoying frequency.
For some reason, his releases had been unsatisfying, and tension remained just below the surface of his skin, as if at any moment his skin could split, releasing his inner demon for a devastating rampage. His body had experienced Idess, and it was her touch it craved, which could be a serious fucking problem if his usual methods for rage control began to fail.
So yeah, twenty hours spent worrying, jerking off, and plotting an escape that involved seducing Idess into letting him go. It was the lamest escape plan in the history of lame escape plans. She was two thousand years old. No way was she falling for the old I Love You So You Can Trust Me ploy.
Which wasn’t to say that he wasn’t going to try. He just didn’t have high hopes for it.
He did, however, have high hopes for his other plan. Because when he’d cuffed himself while under the bore worm’s influence, his subconscious had been in self-preservation mode. He’d done a shitty-ass job, and with little else to do during the last twenty hours, he’d managed to work his left wrist out of the cuff, and if he could get Idess close enough, he could snare her.
But she needed to hurry back. In addition to his impending rage-out, his chest had begun to burn. Detharu was summoning him. Worse, the bond’s pulse, which grew stronger and faster as his deadline approached, had just kicked up a notch.
He’d been here for almost two days. Almost two days closer to Sin’s death. Assuming she was still alive, where did she think he was? She had to be worried. At least, as worried as Sin got about anything.
The sound of footsteps shocked his heart into a stuttered beat, and he quickly snapped his wrist back in the cuff, leaving it loosely closed. His gaze glued to the doorway, he held his breath as he waited to see whether Idess or Sin would walk through.
Idess. Strangely, he was as relieved to see her as he was suddenly afraid for Sin, and how fucked up was that?
Then she smiled, and his mouth dried up. That was a very wicked smile.
“So,” she said. “The Seminus female? Seems she’s your sister.”
Control was at a premium right now, and it took every last drop of it to keep from lunging at Idess and demanding answers. “I’m aware of that. If you did anything to her—”
“I said I wouldn’t.” She waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. “I got her to follow me to the Canadian wilderness. I’ll have to keep avoiding her… tonight I’m thinking I’ll start in China, and then maybe bounce around a little. Do you think she’d like to see the Great Wall?”
Relieved that Sin was okay, Lore relaxed and put on a nonchalant smile. “Sin likes to travel.”
“Good. So do I.” She held up her hand, and bless her little angel heart, she had a bag of fast food. The scent of
burgers and fries made his mouth water.
The sight of a long, creamy expanse of stomach between Idess’s bunched-up tank top and low-slung jeans did, too. His stomach growled and his cock hardened as his body played tug-o-war with its two hungers.
“You hungry?”
“You can’t even imagine.”
Regret swirled in her eyes. “I really am sorry, Lore. I’m not practiced at holding anyone captive.”
“Yeah, your rookie is definitely shining through,” he said gruffly. He didn’t know how to deal with a captor who was actually nice. If she’d beaten him or taunted him or even just said nothing at all, he’d be right in the zone. But Idess left him in a state of what-the-fuck-do-I-do-now, when he normally knew exactly what to do in any situation.
She also left him in a state of arousal, and he definitely knew what to do in that situation.
He had to get her naked. And chained up. And if the signals she’d given off during and after her feeding were any indication, she wouldn’t mind. No, she’d been hot for him—that much had been certain.
She sank down next to him, and her hand came up to cup his cheek. The gesture was so tender, so intimate, that once more, he wasn’t sure how to react. His head felt like a damned Ping Pong ball.
“I’m sorry I was gone so long. Believe it or not, I’m trying to find a way out of this.”
“Ah… keys?” he suggested. “That would get me out of this.”
One corner of her mouth cocked up in a flirty little half-smile. “Nice try.”
“So that’s a no?”
“That’s a no.”
He glanced at the bag. “Could I get something to eat then?”
“I wasn’t sure what you like, so I got a Coke, burgers, fries, tots, and a chicken sandwich.” She gave him a puppy-dog-did-I-do-good look that made something inside him melt when nothing should be melting for this woman. His dick twitched, and okay, not everything was melting.
“At this point, I’d eat a fucking cactus,” he muttered, and her shoulders slumped a little. And he actually felt bad about making her feel bad.